I feel like we've saved the best (and most underrated) piece for last... Sleep becomes a different animal in perimenopause and menopause. Many women who used to fall asleep easily and stay asleep are now waking at 1–3am, or lying awake in the early hours with a brain that feels switched on. This isn’t because you’ve suddenly become a “bad sleeper.” It’s physiology. Estrogen and progesterone help regulate temperature, sleep depth, and how easily the brain transitions between “rest” and “alert.” When these hormones fluctuate, sleep becomes lighter, more reactive, and easier to interrupt. Small things can wake us now...a temperature shift, a partner breathing, a pet moving, or a passing thought about something we forgot to do. There’s also the stress physiology piece. You don’t have to feel stressed during the day for your nervous system to behave like it’s stressed at night. Elevated cortisol, rumination, planning thoughts, and that “tired-but-wired” feeling are all more common in midlife. Food patterns matter as well. Low protein at dinner, long gaps without eating, heavy alcohol, or very refined carbohydrates at night can all make sleep more fragmented. What is one thing you can keep doing consistently that will carry you into next week? Check out the Classroom for suggestions :)

🧠We’re wrapping up our 7-day brain health challenge today. This week we tried a handful of small things that actually matter during midlife — protein, attention, movement + thinking, energy timing, and sleep. Before you move on with your week, I’d love you to pause and reflect on three quick questions: 1. What helped your brain the most? 2. What made things harder? 3. What’s one thing you’re willing to keep going for the next few weeks? (Just the realistic one.)

Task for today: 🌿 Add at least one serving of dark leafy greens or cruciferous veg somewhere in your day (kale, spinach, chard, collards, arugula, cabbage, broccoli, Brussels sprouts… fresh or frozen both count). Why are we doing this? Because the research is pretty consistent: Women and older adults who eat more leafy and cruciferous vegetables tend to have slower cognitive decline and better performance on memory and thinking tests as they age. Leafy greens bring: - folate and other B vitamins (important for brain and homocysteine regulation) - carotenoids like lutein and zeaxanthin, which accumulate in brain tissue and are linked with better memory and processing speed - vitamin K, fibre, and a lot of phytochemicals that reduce inflammation and oxidative stress in the brain We’re not saying “kale will fix your life.” We are saying: your brain seems to like vegetables, especially leafy and cruciferous ones, and the data backs that up. Examples: - spinach or kale in an omelette or scramble - mixed greens, arugula, or cabbage in a salad or on a sandwich - frozen spinach stirred into soup, curry, pasta, or stew - broccoli, Brussels sprouts, or cabbage as a side at dinner - kale or spinach blended into a smoothie if that suits you

Ladies, my post for yesterday's challenge didn't upload, and I've only just realised. I'll add it for today, so we'll be a day behind :(

Today: 3–5 minutes of verbal recall out loud 1. Options: - name vegetables - list cities - alphabet backwards - months backwards - count backwards by 7’s - fruit → vegetable → fruit → vegetable 2. Supports: - word-finding - cognitive flexibility - processing speed 3. Notice: Did words come easily? Did you warm up? How did it feel? 4. Share below: What task did you choose?